Whenever someone is discussing Gaming or Gaming systems then the name of “Alienware” is bound to come up. Alienware has become the de-facto gaming system, and rightfully so, the level of peak performance and stability that Alienware offers is hard to find in any other gaming laptop. This year, 2017, Alienware released a new model named “Alienware 17: R4”, needless to say, Alienware didn’t disappoint, whether we are talking about its design or its power-packed hardware.

Dell’s Alienware didn’t really bring any changes to the overall design of the laptop, but the inside of this gaming beast more than makes up for it.

Design

A design that really stands out and looks like a gaming laptop - has always been the strong suite of Dell Alienware. The latest model is based on the same old space ship type design that has become the symbol of Alienware. The color scheme has been muted a bit in this latest model, with only gray and black color in use, a number of lights have also been cut down in this model. The laptop still offers lights at the bottom, the keyboard is backlit with different colors like previous models and of course, the Alien logo and the brand name is illuminated as well.

Overall, the looks; although not too flashy, still maintain the default edgy design of Dell Alienware, with 9.6 pounds the laptop is a bit heavy compared with other gaming systems but it makes up for it with its powerful features. Keyboard and touchpad is smooth and ultra responsive, the laptop maintains a general premium quality in its design.

Screen and Colors

Users can change the colors according to their liking with Alienware FX, R4 supports full RGB color scheme. The shape, is almost identical to the previous models with sharp angles and curvy edges, with one difference, and that is in its bottom which has been made a square in the latest model.

The laptop has a full HD 17.3 inches screen, with real high definition color contrasts and strong graphics. Ports, and lots of them, is a necessity in gaming systems and Alienware 17 doesn’t disappoint in that matter either, the laptop is surrounded with plenty of USB 3.0, USB Type C, HDMI, Mics, ports.

Processing, Graphics, and Audio

This gaming laptop is equipped with a 2.9-GHz Intel (Kaby Lake) Core i7-7820HK CPU, this combined with 16GB DDR4 RAM gives it lightning fast speed and powerful performance, but what really makes it a beast is its dedicated GPU, Nvidia Geforce GTX 1080 graphics card. GTX 1080 has become the flagship GPU for gaming laptops worldwide, if the user still doesn’t feel satisfied then Alienware is also offering a separate Graphics Amplifier, which supports all the latest GPUs by Nvidia with dedicated power supply. An Intel Core i7 Latest Intel processor, plenty of RAM and powerful GPU lets the user play the latest games in high resolution (1080-4000) without facing any lags or hangs.

Audio in this version came down a notch, although the users don't feel any major distortions, and the sound is fairly loud, still sometimes the sound is a bit dull, and lacks details.

Battery and Storage

Although, for pro gamers battery is not usually an issue because they are always plugged in. But sometimes, when you have to carry your laptop with you to distant places without the luxury of a power socket nearby then you’ll want to have a powerful enough battery that can get the work done. The base model 17 R4 can last more than 8 hours (A little over 2 hours on the expensive version with heavier upgrade) on continuous web surfing. Obviously, this rate would come down once the user starts playing a heavy game with high graphical needs, but for everyday work, the battery is perfect.

Storage is 1TB + 256GB SSD in the base version, which can be upgraded, the read-write speeds are a bit slow though.

Bottom Line

Top notch hardware and cool features like Tobii eye tracking (users can control the movements on screen with their eyes), Alienware 17 is priced at $1,299 (base version), the price goes as high as $5,000+ for more upgraded versions. If you want to enjoy the latest and heaviest games and don’t really care about the economic side then you should definitely go for Alienware 17 R4.

If you’re interested in purchasing this gaming beast, then check out our Dell Alienware’s section now!